The Journey of Birthing Cree

Shawn and I were married on July 20, 2014. A few months before we got married I found out at my annual OBGYN visit that the number of fibroid's in my uterus may have grown. I found out a few years ago that I had fibroids and it could cause fertility issues but likely I would be fine and shouldn't have any reason to get them surgically removed. In case you don't know, fibroids are muscular tumors that grow in the wall of the uterus (womb). Fibroids are more common as women age, especially during their 30s and 40s. African-American women
are more likely to develop fibroids. Also, having a family member with fibroids increases your risk. If a woman's mother had fibroids, her risk of having them is about three times higher than average. My mother found out after having me that she had fibroids. So, at my annual visit, my doctor scheduled me to come back in for an ultrasound so they could take a closer look at the fibroids. At the ultrasound appointment my doctor discovered that I had 6 fibroids. She began talking to me seriously about fertility and gave me information on getting them surgically removed but recommended waiting to decide if surgery is the route after I started trying to have a baby. So after receiving all of this news, we accepted that there may be some challenges getting pregnant but we would not take birth control and just rest in God. Well, after 3 months of marriage, we became pregnant! When you honor God, He honors you.  We found out that we were pregnant at the beginning of December 2014 when my cycle was 2 weeks late. I couldn't believe it when I saw 2 pink lines in the pregnancy test. I remember feeling happy and overjoyed but also overwhelmed because we were trying to close on the house and we had all these things that we wanted to do in our businesses and I left corporate america that October 2014 after the Lord released me to leave. I found myself becoming so worried that it wasn't the right time for us to become pregnant as we only had one income, we just bought a house, and we had only been married for 5 months and we were still getting used to being husband and wife. Then my husband reminded me that none of this is a surprise to God and he knows all of these things and it was his decision for us to become pregnant so we needed to rest in him and trust him just like we said we would. We learned that it's okay to write down our plans, but be willing to give God the eraser. A baby was in our plans for our second year of marriage but God erased that and gave us our hearts desire a lot sooner.

Picture taken during our maternity shoot 

As soon as I became pregnant, I called my OBGYN and made an appointment. Because it was around the holidays, the closest appointment I could get was January 6th. A week after finding out that we were pregnant, I began spotting a brownish color blood. I immediately went to Google and went straight into panic mode after reading all the stories of women who had something similar happen to them and they miscarried.  I became terrified of miscarrying. I talked to one of my friends who said the same thing happened with her but she carried her baby full term. That gave me some relief, but I couldn't ignore this feeling that I felt in my spirit. A couple days later, I had to go to a seminar in Columbia, SC. As I was sitting in the seminar I felt a huge tug in my spirit to call my doctor's office to get an earlier appointment because I was still spotting a little. I call the office and the woman said that Dr. Harley's schedule is full and then she'll be on vacation for the holidays. I began telling her why I thought it was so urgent for me to come in and that I would go to any doctor that was available. She then said, "I can squeeze you in on Monday but you have to come first thing that morning." I arrive to the office first thing that Monday with Shawn with me. Dr. Lisa Price was the doctor we were scheduled to see. This was no accident. I love Dr. Harley but I know for fact that God ordained Dr. Price to be my Obstetrician for this journey. Dr. Price performed an ultrasound and we saw the sac, my cervix was closed, and there was a heartbeat. Unfortunately she also discovered blood around my uterus. She said that this is a sign that my body wants to have a cycle and that would terminate my pregnancy. She discovered that my progesterone level was low. Progesterone is a hormone that all women have and it increases once a woman becomes pregnant and protects the baby until the placenta takes over in the second trimester. Dr. Price assured me that she will do everything that she can to make sure that my pregnancy isn't terminated and for me to remain hopeful. She wrote me a prescription for progesterone and told me to take it everyday and to come back on December 31st for a follow-up visit. On New Years Eve, we go to the follow-up appointment and thankfully there was no sign of blood around my uterus! That was the best news ever! We finally felt safe to share our news with our family and close friends. Once I became 13 weeks pregnant and was in my second trimester, we shared our news with everyone else. At 16 weeks when we found out that we were having a girl, we immediately knew what her first name would be...Cree! I always loved the name Cree. One of my favorite sitcoms is "A Different World" and the character Freddie is played by Cree Summer. Watching that show and seeing her name in the credits is the first time I ever heard of the name Cree. While Shawn and I were courting, we used to watch American Idol together. One of the contestants on the show's name was Kree (spelled with a K). I asked Shawn what he thought of the name and said "it's different." After we got engaged, we began looking at houses and whenever we got to a room that looked like it could be a nursery, Shawn would say "this is Cree's room." Actually whenever we would refer to our unborn child, we would say Cree. So once the doctor confirmed that we were having a girl, it was only right that her name would be Cree. We feel like we said her name so much that we spoke her into existence. I asked my best friend Keri to help me select her middle name. Cree is such an odd and non-traditional name so I wanted her middle name to be vintage and have a traditional feel to it. When Keri said "Victoria" I wasn't sure about it but then I started to think about what we were going through in our pregnancy and I thought of the word "Victory" because Cree is already a Victor so her name should be Cree Victoria.

Now that there were no signs of miscarrying, Dr. Price started scheduling for us to go to Northside Hospital's Perinatal Center so they could monitor the fibroids throughout my pregnancy. This was crucial because I had so many fibroids. Because of all the fibroids, my uterus was a lot bigger which made my bump a lot bigger. Some family, friends, and social media followers kept saying that I had to be carrying twins not knowing the medical condition that I had. In the beginning of my pregnancy the fibroids didn't bother me or Cree. She was measuring above the target weight each week and I didn't have any cramping. Well, that was very short lived. Once I entered my third trimester, I began experiencing really strong cramps and contractions. 2 of the fibroids were growing with the baby and they were very large. They felt like baseballs when I would press my hand on my stomach. Because the fibroids grew so much, Cree's weight started to become stagnant and that posed a possible problem. I was at risk for pre-term labor and/or having a very small baby. Our goal was to get to at least 38 weeks so that Cree could be fully developed and healthy. With all of this going on, we had to make sure that we only shared what we were going through with people who would encourage us and pray for us. My sister-friend Tara bought me a book called "Prayers and Promises for Supernatural Childbirth" by Jackie Mize. I recommend this book for women who are having trouble becoming pregnant and women who are currently pregnant. This book contains some powerful prayers and promises that you can speak over your life and your baby's life. Once I entered the fourth trimester, I felt so much relief. Cree's weight was still a little stagnant but it was slowly progressing. At my 36 week Perinatal appointment, they said that Cree was only 4 lbs 8 oz and that she was supposed to gain about a ounce a day since the previous appointment and that they were starting to get really concerned. They performed some test to see if it was anything other than the fibroids. I passed all the tests. The doctor then told us to come back in 2 weeks to see if there was any progress in her weight. Two weeks later I had an appointment at Dr. Price's office. Everything was looking good and she confirmed that my cervix was still closed. A couple days later, I had the follow-up appointment at the Perinatal Center. They did the measurements and Cree measured 5 lbs 5 oz. Still not much growth. That day the doctors decided that I should be induced to allow the baby to gain weight outside of the womb. They felt that the placenta had done all it was going to do and that the fibroids were not allowing the baby to gain the weight that she needs. I was 38 weeks so I was considered full term and the only reason that the baby needed to stay in the womb until 40 weeks was to gain weight but she wasn't gaining so this was the best option. So they admitted me into the hospital that night to be induced for a vaginal delivery.

So many things were running through my mind. Being induced was not apart of the birthing plan that I created in my head and a vaginal delivery really wasn't either because the doctor's were talking about a possible c-section for the past couple months. I had to remind myself again that we submitted to God's plan so I need to rest in Him and that He didn't bring me this far to leave me. Around 12 am that night they started by softening my cervix because my cervix was closed and very tight and this needed to be done before I could start the contractions. A couple hours later the nurse came in to check my cervix. I screamed and hollered so loudly because it was super painful. Softening the cervix makes the vagina area very sensitive and checking the cervix is already painful. I cried to Shawn and told him that I didn't think I could do this. Fear definitely started to sink in. My husband instantly grabbed my hand and placed his hand on my womb and began praying and encouraging me. In that moment I knew that I could do it and that God was with me. 30 minutes later, my water broke. I was relieved about my water breaking on its own. I knew that was my signal that it was game time! At 6 am they started the induction. The contractions were pretty mild at first but quickly became intense. I used two breathing exercises that I learned and they really helped me get through the contractions. At 8am I was only 1 1/2 cm dilated so the nurse didn't want to get the epidural until I was a little further along. A couple hours later, the contractions started to become unbearable. They put some sort of pain medications in my iv but that didn't help. The nurse told me again that I should wait. She said that since this is my first baby that I would probably not deliver until some time that evening the way I was dilating. Around 12pm, I couldn't take it anymore and told her that I need the epidural. So she checked my cervix and I was 6 cm dilated! The nurse couldn't believe it! She immediately ordered the epidural and the anesthesiologist arrived a few minutes later with the epidural. If I didn't say anything to the nurse, I would have been too far dilated to get the epidural. Once I got the epidural, it was a smooth ride after that! I thanked God for giving women a second chance after the fall of Eve by giving us the epidural! Judge me not....that stuff was good to me! Around 1 o'clockish, the nurse came in to check where I was and to her and everybody's surprise, I was 10 cm dilated! A few minutes later, Dr. Price walked in and I was super excited to see her because she's been on this journey with us since our very first appointment. My Mother and Father in-Love was also there. My mother and brother was still on the road and a hour away (My mommy was so upset that she missed it but no one expected my labor to go that quickly). Shawn and Audra (the RN) held my legs and I began to push. The first 8 pushes I felt like I wasn't pushing right. Dr. Price told me that I'm putting all my tension in my face and that I should push down like I'm having a bowl movement. I tried pushing again but I was just not getting it. So Dr. Price asked if I wanted them to put the mirror in front so I could see. So she put the mirror in front and I began to push and I watched the crowning of her head....it was an awesome feeling! Then they said to push with all my might and I did and out came Cree!! When she came out, she did not immediately cry so I was scared. I looked at Dr. Price and asked if everything was ok and she said yes, she's just startled because she came out with her face up.....30 seconds later I hear her cry. At 2:09pm on July 17, 2015, Cree Victoria Spears was born! Shawn was by her side as they examined her. I kept hearing the nurses say how small she was. I asked Dr. Price and she said 4 lbs 7 oz. My heart was so sad when she said that. I knew Cree would be small, but I thought 5 lbs 5 oz like they told me at the Perinatal Center. I didn't know that those measurements are only estimates and that a baby can be either bigger or smaller. Finally Shawn brought her over to me and I held her and it was love at first sight! They then took her to NICU to get examined because she was under 5 lbs.

While Cree was getting examined I got checked into the postpartum room where we would be staying for a couple days. As soon as the RN came in, I asked if I could go to the NICU and see my baby. Once I got in the NICU and saw her hooked to all these machines and I looked at her thin body, I got so sad. She was long (18 inches which is average for a full term baby) but you could see her rib cage and her legs and arms were so thin. I began to question God as I looked at my baby. "Lord, how is it possible to carry a baby for 38 weeks and she only weighs 4 lbs 7 oz." I told the Lord "I worshiped with her, read to her, spoke affirmations over her life...how did I end up with a baby this small. Is there something I did?" God immediately told me that this is how He made Cree and that this is apart of her testimony. He then reminded me of David. David was little and no one expected him to defeat Goliath but He did. Then I began to think about the journey of getting Cree here. From the very beginning she had to fight for her life! I can only imagine what it was like in the womb surrounded by all of those fibroids leaching and taking the blood and nourishment that she needed to grow but still she fought and she's here now! I had nothing to be sad about. God told me "Cree is healthy and she's going to be fine." I asked the nurse to hold her and I held her and prayed over her. A few hours later they brought Cree up to our room because she passed all of her tests. The doctors came in to speak with us and they said that she was perfectly healthy and that they didn't see a reason for her to not be released with me that Sunday. Other than the first evaluation, Cree didn't spend anytime in NICU! We kept her in our room for the entire stay. God is so awesome.

Today, Cree is 3 weeks old and she weighs a little over 6 lbs. She is exclusively breast fed and latched on right away! She loves to eat and hates sleep LOL. She is the sweetest baby and we are overjoyed to be her parents. Thank you to everyone for your prayers and encouragement. We've received so many sweet comments on our social media and email. Thank you for continuing to be apart of our journey.



God Bless You

- Shawn and Jennifer Spears